The NFL stripped the Dolphins of a pair of draft picks and issued other penalties to team owner Stephen Ross on Tuesday for tampering violations involving Tom Brady and Sean Payton in recent years.
Miami’s communications with Brady began when he was a member of the Patriots in 2019 and continued through his 2020 departure from the team as a free agent. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell called the violations “unprecedented” in their scope and severity, but Patriots head coach Bill Belichick stayed true to form when he was asked for his own comment on the developments.
“I’m focused on training camp. That’s all in the past,” Belichick said, via multiple reporters.
It would have been surprising if Belichick had offered anything more about what the Patriots knew in 2019 or how he might have felt about Brady talking to another team in the division about jumping ship while still under contract in New England, so any louder reaction will have to come from others who might have feelings about what went down in Miami.
